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Jazz Classical Pop

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About the album

Since his studenthood at the Leningrad Conservatory Dmitri Shostakovich had developed a strong connection to cinema. In the twenties of the last century he earned his living as a pianist at silent movie theatres, and the influence of this new media, which became highly important in the young Soviet Union, went along with the composer for a lifetime, testified by an output of nearly 40 film scores. In 1955 Alexander Fainzimmer made a film based on the novel ''The Gadfly'' by the English authoress Ethel Lilian Voynich, which was extremely popular and a bestseller in the Soviet Union. It was about the tragic story of a young freedom fighter in 19th-century Italy nicknamed ''Gadfly'', who, as an illegitimate son of a cardinal ultimately turned into a rebelling dandy, who was finally executed by a firing squad. Shostakovich was intrigued by the plot and the environment where it took place, since this allowed him to play with Mediterranean musical patterns. Shostakovich's assoc

Shostakovich’s suite from the film music The Gadfly is widely familiar. Sviridnov’s music for the film ‘Snowstorm’ after Pushkin is less known. Both suites are musically rich and entertaining as well. The performances are colourful and enthralling.